Sean Paul Murphy, Writer

Sean Paul Murphy, Writer
Sean Paul Murphy, Storyteller

Monday, June 16, 2025

CHARM CITY - Lost film posted online

Charm City is an independent comedy written and directed by the late Ralph Prepetit and produced by Marc Weiner. It was the first feature film I edited.* I was recommended for the assignment by the cinematographer Peter Mullett, whose IMDB credits in no way do justice to his fascinating career.

The film is about a womanizing college student with a serious gambling problem played by the always entertaining Johnny Alonso. The film takes place over a hectic day in his life as he desperately hits up all of his friends for money to pay a gambling debt to his bookie and avoid his girlfriend, who he is cheating on.

The director and producers and the leads were all recent college graduates themselves and the film reflected the world they lived in. That world seems to have been very vulgar and more than a little misogynistic. Misogyny was not uncommon in films and stand up comedy of the 1990s. Have you watched In The Company of Men or Clerks lately? I don't know how old and stogy I appeared at the time, but director Ralph Prepetit warned me that I might find the language in the film, and the rap songs he wanted to use as a temp track, offensive. I didn't. However, it was too much for my assistant editor Patricia Macneal. She read the script and flatly refused to work on the film. I had to replace her with my friend Patricia Schweers, who usually worked on big budget Hollywood films.

The film was shot on Super 16mm. It had a very tight shooting ratio of about three-to-one. I believe we had less than six hours of footage overall. (I have subsequently edited features with more than six hours of footage for one scene!) We were so desperate for cutaway material that I often resorted to using shots of the actors after the slate was pulled away but before action was called to use as reaction shots in dialogue scenes.

There is a lot of bad language in the film. Being a little more experienced in the world of indie filmmaking, I warned the director that it might prove a hinderance to distribution. Ralph wasn't worried. He pointed out many examples of films equally foul-mouthed that got distribution.  Oh well.

We edited the film in a week on Baltimore filmmaker Michael Lawrence's Avid system. I stayed involved through the sound mix by Lewis Mills at Flite Three Studios and the negative cutting by Donny Bono. Ralph left for California before the film was completed. It was deemed that the ending didn't quite work. I was brought on to write a final scene. We shot the scene and incorporated it into the film. So, yes, this is my first produced feature writing assignment. Uncredited, of course.

I don't know if they ever tried to get the film into festivals, but the language proved to be a barrier to distribution, just as I predicted. Ralph called me a couple months after the film was completed and asked if there was anyway to remove some of it. I didn't see how we could. It was completely baked into some of the scenes and we had no alternate takes. The chances of distribution increasingly faded when the director broke with the producers and there seemed to be confusion about who owned the film and who could make a deal.

A few years later I had dealings with a distribution company that I felt would like the film. I called Marc Weiner and his brother and producing partner Bryan. I told them about the possible deal. They told me to pursue it. I asked if they had the authority to sign a deal or whether they had to get Ralph's approval. They assured me they could make the deal. I contacted the company and gave them a DVD I made from a VHS screener. The distribution company said they wanted it. I told Marc and Bryan the good news. However, they then said they would have to get Ralph's approval before they proceeded.

The deal was never made.

I washed my hands of the project with some regret. Although the film wasn't to my taste, I do regret that the work of the actors would never be seen. There were some nice performances.

Years later, I saw star Johnny Alonso at a social function. He asked if I had a copy of the film. I said yes and gave him my final DVD print. That left me with nothing but a decaying VHS copy and a closet full of Super 16mm work print.  (Long story, don't ask.)  Recently, I was talking with another friend named Ed Neenan, who had written and performed the song under the opening credits. He asked me if I had a copy of the song. I reached out to Johnny Alonso, and asked if I could get the DVD back to post the film online. Johnny beat me to the punch.

I'm glad the film is online. I wish it was a better print. Someone somewhere has a final film print and a high quality video transfer. Sadly, I don't think it will ever see the light of day.  That's a shame, especially now that Ralph has passed away. This film is part of his legacy.

So, if you want to see Charm City, you have to watch this print on YouTube.

Enjoy, if you can....

 

I wish I had the ambition to put the film on the IMDB.

*Technically speaking, I might have done some editing work on Tom Brandau's feature Cold Harbor prior to my work on Charm City, but Charm City was completed first. The famous writer/director Mike Flanagan did the final edit of Cold Harbor. To his everlasting credit, Mike managed to convince Tom to cut a scene that stopped the film dead in its tracks. 

Be sure to check out my memoir The Promise, or the Pros and Cons of Talking with God, published by TouchPoint Press. It is my true story of first faith and first love and how the two became almost fatally intertwined.



Here are some sample chapters of The Promise:

Chapter 7 - Mission Accomplished
Chapter 15 - Quarter To Midnight

Be sure to check out my novel Chapel Street. It tells the story of a young man straddling the line between sanity and madness while battling a demonic entity that has driven his family members to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting my family experienced.

You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

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Wednesday, May 14, 2025

Brad Stine Has Issues Podcast

I recently had the pleasure to appear on the Brad Stine Has Issues podcast to discuss screenwriting, among other things. I had a great time.

I've known Brad for quite a while. He appeared in three films I co-wrote: Marriage Retreat, Run On and Sarah's Choice. Prior to that, my partner Tim Ratajczak and I discussed writing another film project with him. Brad and I later bonded during an particularly ugly lawsuit. I have always found him to be a very ethical man. He's one of the few people in the movie business I call for advice when I find myself in an ethical quandary.

The interview has been edited. A pity. Among other things, you missed a forty-five minute discussion of The Three Stooges.

Check out the podcast:

 

Be sure to check out my memoir The Promise, or the Pros and Cons of Talking with God, published by TouchPoint Press. It is my true story of first faith and first love and how the two became almost fatally intertwined.



Here are some sample chapters of The Promise:

Chapter 7 - Mission Accomplished
Chapter 15 - Quarter To Midnight

Be sure to check out my novel Chapel Street. It tells the story of a young man straddling the line between sanity and madness while battling a demonic entity that has driven his family members to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting my family experienced.

You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

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Friday, March 7, 2025

LOOK BACK IN LOVE released

My latest album Look Back in Love has been released.  It is available on all major streaming services.

I believe I wasted too many years of my life concentrating on what I felt was taken away from me instead of what I has been given to me. That’s why I have now embraced the philosophy of looking back in love.

Look at the veritable flood of heartbreak songs I have written about the women in my life. If you judged those women simply by those words, you’d think they were horrible people. They weren’t. They shared their hearts, their thoughts and their affection with me for years. Now I see they gave me all of the love they had for me. I simply wasn’t someone they wanted to marry. Should I punish them for that? Actually I’m glad none of my former partners married me out of a sense of obligation. That would have been terrible for both of us.

Does that mean I have never been hurt? No. Does that mean I’ve never been wronged? No. I acknowledge that, but at this time in my life I prefer to look at what I’ve been given and not what has been taken away. I look back in love. Hence the title of this album: Look Back in Love.

Here's the track listing:

1). PLEASING FICTION  doesn't necessarily encapsulate my thematic ideal for the album. It is essentially another one of my songs complaining about an emotionally inconsistent partner.

Strangely, I was inspired to write this song by my ten-year-old granddaughter Mara. I was driving with her and asked her what kind of music she liked. She said she liked K-Pop, and played a number of those songs for me. One of those songs even rhymed fiction with friction, but in a different context. I decided it was time to write a K-Pop song.

Lyrically, the chorus was inspired by my wife Debbie during a previous period of difficulty. One day she would say she loved me, only to say the next day that she didn’t. That made me think that her words of love were a fiction. The verses more reflect my relationship with my elusive farm girl Mandy. The lyrics have an overall sexual emphasis because, well, it’s a K-Pop song.

 

2).  LOVE'S SWEET ABYSS was the first song I wrote for the album, before I even knew I was writing an album. I often wake up in the morning with lyrics going through my head, but they rarely survive the trip downstairs to the computer. In this case, I woke up with the complete chorus and I managed to remember it long enough to write it down.

The verses reflect my relationship with my elusive farm girl. Why do I always return to her? First, she was a huge influence on my life. Secondly, I am a dramatist by profession, and my relationship with Mandy was the most dramatic one of my life. As a result, I suspect our relationship will always prove a fertile ground for inspiration.

I directed Udio to give this song a contemporary pop feeling. I wanted to go with a more modern sound with this album. It really helps the first few songs flow together.

3). LOVE'S AFTERGLOW reflects my desire that sex be something more than merely a physical act. What I want most from sex is emotional intimacy. That’s what this song is about.

4). LOOK BACK IN LOVE is the title track. I try to express my new philosophy in the this song. I originally wrote this song from a male perspective, but I couldn’t find the right voice. It sounded better when I switched to a female vocalist, and I did have to alter some of the original lyrics to reflect the change.

5). A CANDLE IN THE DARK is a love song about platonic love. It was inspired by a dear friend of mine who has been my most trusted confidant for more than thirty years. 

6). ALL OF MY LOVE is a "she said" song from the perspective of Mandy, my elusive farm girl. The lyrics from the opening verses were inspired by emails she sent me early in our relationship, but the bulk of the song comes from a card she sent me prior to our brief engagement


7). EULOGY, No 1 is based on a poem I wrote for the eulogy I gave at my sister Laura’s funeral after she took her life on Valentine’s Day in 1994. 


8). EVERY RIGHT is another examination of my new philosophy of looking back in love. Some of my close friends think I am too soft a touch; that I am too quick to forgive people. In this song I examine how I am forgiving others to heal my own heart, not necessarily to help or justify the other person. If my attitude helps the other person: Great! Regardless, it is something I have to do for myself.


9). I ALREADY MISS YOU is a “she said” song from the perspective of my first girlfriend Kathy. It was inspired by a letter she sent me immediately after one of my weekend visits to her college.  I worked hard finding the right musical tone for this song. I was trying to replicate the sound from the Carole King album Tapestry, which was one of Kathy’s favorites. I think the A-I singer managed to capture King’s cadence if not her voice. This is another one of my favorite songs on the album.


10). My song  THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA from my previous album expressed Mandy's concern that no one would ever really know her. I wrote the next song UNSATISFIED after my wife Debbie expressed similar thoughts.  While I am sympathetic to their concerns, I must say that if you feel no one knows you, you have to take some responsibility for that yourself. You have to open up if you want people to know you! While I must confess that I ultimately left Mandy unsatisfied, I am having better luck with my wife.


11). RED HILL WAY was co-written with my wife Debbie.  Red Hill Way was the name of the street where she lived with her late ex-husband Bob.

Debbie’s best ideas always seem to come while she’s driving. One day, she called me from the road and sang me the chorus. Later, we sat down together to work on the song. I asked Debbie to tell me all of the things that house brought to mind. Afterwards, she got busy and I had to finish up the song myself. She was very happy with the result.

 

12).  I CANNOT CLOSE THE DOOR is about my inability to close the door completely on someone I love regardless of what they did. Once I love someone, romantically or otherwise, I always care for them. I meant this song to be more general, but as I started writing it became more individually specific and more sexual than I intended. The narrator of I Cannot Close the Door seems sexually obsessed with a former partner. That was not my initial intention, but it certainly makes for a better song. Sometimes you have to follow your muse!


13).  A SECRET PATH expresses my belief that every relationship is individual and unique. My relationship with Kathy was different than my relationship with Mandy, Kaycee or Debbie. That doesn’t mean one is better than the others. You just can’t seek the same thing you had with one person that you had with another. Every couple walks a secret path that cannot be replicated with anyone else. That’s another reason to look back in love. The joy you found with one person, regardless of how short-lived, can never be repeated with someone else.


14). SHE NEVER HAD TO LEAVE is the second eulogy on the album. When you look back in love, you can’t help but think about the people who left this world before us. In this song, I look back at my father and grandfather in the first verse, my sister Laura and my brother Mark, who both took their own lives, in the second verse, and my little granddaughter Emma in the final verse. And, yes, I did like the world much better before they had to go…


15).  I intended the previous song to be the closer, but I wanted to end the album on a more upbeat tone so I wrote UNDER THE SAME SKY. The song expresses my contentment that my many past loves still live under the same sky as me. I don’t ever need to see any of them again to look back in joy at what they shared with me. And, yes, I do pray for them all.

I hope you enjoy the songs and the album. You can listen to it on these and other streaming services:



Be sure to check out my memoir The Promise, or the Pros and Cons of Talking with God, published by TouchPoint Press. It is my true story of first faith and first love and how the two became almost fatally intertwined.



Here are some sample chapters of The Promise:


Be sure to check out my novel Chapel Street. It tells the story of a young man straddling the line between sanity and madness while battling a demonic entity that has driven his family members to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting my family experienced.

You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

Follow me on Twitter: SeanPaulMurphy
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Tuesday, January 28, 2025

YKY REUNION: DIE HARD

We recently enjoyed a reunion of part of the Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast on John Quattrucci's new YouTube Page John Talks Indian Cinema.  It's too bad Ralph and Chris didn't join us.  It was a lot of fun.  My wife Deborah thought this was the most enjoyable  podcast she appeared on.  Watch it and see if you agree:

    

My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can currently buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Follow me on Twitter: SeanPaulMurphy
Follow me on Facebook: Sean Paul Murphy
Follow me on Instagram: Sean Paul Murphy
Subscribe on YouTube: Sean Paul Murphy

Wednesday, December 4, 2024

THE STRUGGLE released!

My latest album The Struggle is now available streaming everywhere.

The Struggle follows the loose concept of marriage(s) and relationship(s) on the brink. It is strongly reminiscent of my second album Breakup City, but from a more mature viewpoint. It's much easier to break up with a partner when you're in your teens or early twenties. It's much more difficult to end a relationship after you've spent decades together and your lives have been intertwined by bonds of marriage, family, finances and memory. 

I was inspired to create this album as a result of problems in my own relationship. For the first twenty years my marriage was nothing short of idyllic. It exceeded my idealistic expectations. However, we hit a rough spot that was supercharged by the traumatic death of our beautiful eight-year-old granddaughter Emma Renee Schwalm. A majority of marriages collapse after the sudden death of a  child, and it seemed our marriage was on that path. Fortunately, we managed to right ourselves as a result of prayer, soul-searching, counseling and our deep reserve of love.

Unlike the bulk of my previous albums, the majority of these songs have been recently composed. However, some of the songs date to other relationships where I experienced the same range of emotions. The album does end happily, like my own marriage.

I hope you enjoy the album.

Here are the tracks:

1).  NOW EVEN NOW.  I wrote this song to my wife during a particularly troubled period to express my continued longing despite our problems. I texted the song to her while she was at the pool with the grandkids. She angrily wrote back: "Why did you send me a song about (Name Withheld)?" That was a real wake-up call for me. That my wife could confuse a song I had written for her with a song I might have written for my elusive farm girl during that breakup was a sign of how far apart we had grown. However, the mistake shouldn't have been surprising. I was experiencing the same sense of hopelessness and longing that I did at that time....

   

2).  MY HEART MY LOVE MY ALL.  This song is, in a sense, the mirror opposite of the previous song. This song was initially based on a poem I had written to my elusive farm girl back in the 1990s. However, when I converted it into a song, it became very much about my wife and myself. It's about the helplessness one feels when you want the relationship more than your partner. You can't want it enough for the both of you. It takes two.

   

3).  THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA. This song is not about any of my relationships. A friend of mine expressed her concerns about her marriage and I turned it into this song. I think it is the best song on the album. I believe the lyrics are strong, and it was one of my best Udio executions. If I had access to a studio filled with great session musicians and singers, I don't think I would have come up with anything better.

        

4).  WHEN TWO BECOME ONE.  Okay, this song is about sex on the surface level, but it is really about the power of touch. I am a great believer in touch. They say a picture says a thousand words. A simple touch can do the same thing. In all of my relationships, I've discovered that if my partner and I are touching we're still alive and growing. When we stop touching, things grow cold.

 

5). IMPENETRABLE. Emotions can become overwhelming. With all the hardship coming down on her, my wife was advised to set up firm boundaries, which she tried to turn into an impenetrable wall to protect herself. I believe walling yourself off is a short-term solution at best. Personally, I prefer to go the other way....  For example, expressing my feelings through a bunch of highly personal songs.

   

6). WALKING THROUGH A MINEFIELD. I doubt that there isn't a married person who can't identify with this song. There's nothing worse than being afraid to speak because you have no idea what will set your spouse off. I really love this song. I think it could be a hit if it were recorded by a country artist.

 

7). STILL I BELIEVE.  Romantically, I am an idealist. I want to believe in my partner. I want to believe in love. That's what this song is about: Continuing to believe despite being in a relationship where the actions don't always match the words. Yes, still I believe.....

 

8).  WHY I LOVE YOU.  An old girlfriend of mine once asked me why I loved her. In a moment of self-doubt, she wondered why anyone would give a sh$t about her. I wrote this song in response.

 

9). I DON'T FEEL THE SAME WAY ANYMORE.  This song is based on something my wife told me during one of our down moments. She said she loved me. She forgave me. But she didn't feel the same way anymore. When I played this song for her later, she reassured me that she no longer felt the same way about me that she had felt about me when she said that. Good!

 

10). THE RISING OF THE SUN. I wanted to write some extremely personal songs for this album and what could be more personal than writing about losing my "innocence," as it were. I thought that moment would be the beginning of even greater emotional intimacy, but instead it proved to be the harbinger of the end of our relationship. This is another one of my favorite songs on the album.

    

11).  YOU'RE GONE NOW. This is the oldest song on the album, harkening back to my breakup with my first girlfriend. Even then, I was still reaching out. I am always willing to stand by commitments I made. I've always had a hard time closing my heart to someone I loved. That's my curse.

 

12). A LOVER WITHOUT LOVE.  With this song, from my elusive farm girl period, I try to answer the question: What's a lover without love to do? I didn't have the answer at the time, but it ultimately proved to be attend swing dances until you find Deborah Crum.

 

13).  DO YOU REMEMBER? One of the difficulties in ending a long term relationship is the reservoir of memories. The good times can linger forever in the heart. That's what this song is about. Another favorite of mine.

 

14).  NOW EVEN NOW (REPRISE). This track is a second take on the opening song from a female perspective with an altered melody and lyrics. It is a more optimistic take. I thought it would make a good album closer, but, as my personal situation improved, I decided to add a few more upbeat songs.

 

15). CANVAS OF DREAMS. This is an alternate take of the 2nd song from my first album The Elusive Farm Girl. I wrote it the night before our first meeting after a long internet flirtation. I didn't use this take because I thought a male voice worked better in the context of that album. However, I feel the cautious but genuine optimism of this take works wonderfully here.

 

16). LOVE 2.0. The good thing about marital difficulties is that they can lead to growth and greater intimacy if you survive them. That's what this song is about. I feel my wife and I have both changed for the better.

 

17). NAKED TIME! I don't have a cure-all for ailing marriages and relationships, but it certainly helps to have a wife who is known to come home after a hard day's work and shout: "It's naked time!" I, for one, find it hard to be grumpy during naked time.

 

I hope you enjoy the songs and the album. You can listen to it on these and other streaming services:

Amazon Music


Be sure to check out my memoir The Promise, or the Pros and Cons of Talking with God, published by TouchPoint Press. It is my true story of first faith and first love and how the two became almost fatally intertwined.



Here are some sample chapters of The Promise:


Be sure to check out my novel Chapel Street. It tells the story of a young man straddling the line between sanity and madness while battling a demonic entity that has driven his family members to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting my family experienced.

You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

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Monday, December 2, 2024

YKY REUNION(S): JAWS/THE NIGHT STALKER


The Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast of old is no more. It has morphed into two separate podcasts.  Founder Ralph Quattrucci has recreated Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast in a new format -- featuring person face-to-face with two people, usually his wife and himself, called The Cinematic Lounge. Meanwhile, Ralph's brother John Quattrucci has created a new podcast called John Talks Indian Cinema, continuing our former emphasis on Indian films. We, the other regulars, have found ourselves adrift.

John invited some of us regulars, Wojo, Brad, Drew, my wife Debbie and myself, and Drew's wife Kelly, back to discuss the film Jaws. Ralph had previously forbidden us to review Jaws in our previous incarnation because he didn't think we collectively had anything new to add to criticism of the film. I'll let you be the judge. I don't know whether we added anything new, but we certainly enjoyed ourselves.

 

 John had broken the episode into a number of parts including this discussion of our favorite lines from the film:

And also our Halloween recommends:


I always had an open invitation to reappear with Ralph on the mothership. I couldn't resist and brought one of my favorite films of all time: the made-for-TV film The Night Stalker, which inspired the influential but uneven series of the same name. It was a fun discussion. Check it out.

 

 Be sure to follow both podcasts.

I wonder if a full reunion would be in the offing if we decided to finally tackle Die Hard....

Be sure to check out my memoir The Promise, or the Pros and Cons of Talking with God, published by TouchPoint Press. It is my true story of first faith and first love and how the two became almost fatally intertwined.



Here are some sample chapters of The Promise:


Be sure to check out my novel Chapel Street. It tells the story of a young man straddling the line between sanity and madness while battling a demonic entity that has driven his family members to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting my family experienced.

You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

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